1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to an apparatus and method for outputting voice. More particularly, the present invention relates to an apparatus and method for outputting voice, which receives an information item suitable to the user's taste among information items existing on a network, such as the Internet, in a text format, converts the information item into voice, and then outputs the voice.
2. Description of the Related Art
As the ARPANET, which was constructed in 1966 so as to connect four universities in the U.S.A. with each other with the aid of the U.S. Department of Defense became known as the Internet in 1990, it has become possible for users to share one or more information items with each other through the Internet. However, information items existing on the Internet are too vast for users to easily search one or more desired information items. As a result, web-based search sites and portal sites have appeared.
However, since such search sites or portal sites indiscriminately provide searched contents, all users receive the same kind of contents. That is, the users receive the same kind of contents regardless of their tastes.
In the past, portable computer apparatuses have included PDAs (Personal Digital Assistants) and laptops. However, as the functions of portable phones have been diversified, it has also become possible for a portable phone to serve as a portable computer apparatus. In addition, portable apparatuses, which provide services such as games, navigation, digital multimedia broadcasting or multimedia contents' reproduction, have appeared, where such apparatuses not only provide their own functions but also provide information items existing on networks by using wireless communication.
Despite the increase in the supply of portable apparatuses, all users indiscriminately receive certain information items as described above. As a result, each user receives information items that are not suitable to the user's own taste, but suitable to popular tastes.
In addition, portable devices typically have a display window that is not very large in order to emphasize the portability of the device. Thus, a user may feel that receiving an information item transmitted through a network in a text format displayed on the display window is inconvenient.
Therefore, an information item suitable to a user's taste among a vast number of information items existing on a network is needed to be easily and conveniently transmitted to the user.